PART III. THE CORTEX 



With the failure of investigators to demonstrate the function 

 of the adrenal medulla, interest was gradually shifted to the 

 cortex as the important part of the adrenal. During the last 

 two decades, numerous studies have been made on the function 

 of the cortical tissue and the product of its secretion. The 

 importance of the cortex for the maintenance of the functional 

 integrity of the organism has been demonstrated most con- 

 clusively. There remains little doubt that the cortical cells 

 of the adrenal elaborate a hormone of vital importance to the 

 organism, and that death rapidly follows the exclusion of this 

 hormone from the body. By what mechanism this hormone 

 exerts its effects is still unknown. The various theories 

 advocated thus far are, for the most part, unworthy of serious 

 consideration since they are based on some specific manifesta- 

 tion of adrenal insufficiency and ignore all other aspects of the 

 problem. It has been suggested that the cortical hormone is 

 essential for the well-being of all the tissues of the body. If 

 this be true one should be able to demonstrate striking effects 

 of the hormone on in vitro preparations of tissue cultures. 



A great advance in the study of the cortex has been made 

 by the preparation of the cortical hormone in sufficiently pure 

 and potent form to permit its application to clinical and 

 experimental problems. The isolation of the hormone and its 

 chemical study with a view toward its ultimate synthesis still 

 remain as problems for the future, although some progress in 

 these directions has already been made. 



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